


all i know is there's nowhere i'd rather be

by lesbianchloeprice



Category: The Last of Us (Video Games)
Genre: Coming Out, F/F, Fluff, Light Angst, Pre-Canon, Pre-Relationship, Unrequited Crush, Useless Lesbian Ellie (The Last of Us), but not really
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:01:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,446
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28242840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lesbianchloeprice/pseuds/lesbianchloeprice
Summary: “Girls,” Ellie blurted impulsively, shutting her eyes tight as soon as the word left her mouth.“Uh… girls?”“I like… I like girls. Not, not boys. Girls.”Very smooth, Ellie.ORA sunny day at the lake leads to some confessions.It also leaves Ellie with more questions than she'd started.
Relationships: Dina/Ellie (The Last of Us)
Comments: 16
Kudos: 102





	all i know is there's nowhere i'd rather be

They sat by the lake, bare feet dangling over the dock, toes just brushing the frigid water. It was the beginning of June and, as the boys splashing in the distance had claimed, it was finally warm enough for the first swim of the summer. Ellie, however, thought they were absolutely ridiculous, legs covered in goosebumps from the minuscule amount of contact she had with the water. But when Dina had asked her to tag along earlier that morning, wide puppy dog eyes and pouting lips, well… 

How could she say no to that?

Luckily Dina had the brains to stay out of the water, unlike the rest of their friends. Not a single self-preservation skill to be found between the lot of them. Ellie had been sketching for the past hour, just little things here and there, like Jesse dunking Aiden, or a bird perched on a nearby tree limb. Mostly she focused on a rough sketch of Dina’s profile, eyes crinkled and mouth open wide in laughter, her thick, curly hair pulled back in a braid. All of Ellie’s attention was diverted to capturing how the sun glinted in Dina’s dark eye, when suddenly hot breath tickled her neck. 

“Whatcha drawing?” Dina stage whispered, leaning heavily on Ellie’s shoulder as she peeked towards her sketchbook, and Ellie startled so hard that her pencil flew from her grasp and into the lake, before slamming her journal shut with a thump. Both girls watched as the pencil sunk beneath the surface, disappearing beneath the gentle waves, and when Ellie turned to glare at Dina, she was met with a guilty smile. 

“Sorry?” she offered, biting her lower lip as she waited for Ellie’s reaction, and Ellie just sighed, sliding her journal into her bag and leaning back. 

“You owe me a pencil,” she grumbled with half-hearted annoyance, but truthfully, it was already forgiven. Ellie couldn’t stay mad at Dina even if she wanted to. 

“Yeah,” Dina sighed, matching Ellie’s movements as she leaned back, supporting her weight with her palms, elbows extended. “Fair enough.” 

The boys were laughing loudly from their spot in the middle of the lake, tossing a frisbee back and forth between the group. “How are they not freezing right now?” Ellie wondered out loud, exasperation in her voice.

Dina just shrugged, turning and shooting a smirk at Ellie. “So,” she started, and Ellie was already dreading what was about to come out of her mouth, Dina’s words dripping with mischief. “I saw you were drawing Jesse.”

Ellie groaned, sensing where this was going. “Dina-” 

But Dina cut her off, sitting up and grinning excitedly. “Do you like him?” 

Yep. There it is. 

Ellie floundered for a second, opening and shutting her mouth like a trout from the lake. “I… that’s… no! No, fuck no!” 

“Sounds like something someone with a crush would say,” Dina teased, narrowing her eyes playfully. 

“I do  _ not  _ have a crush on Jesse!” 

“Ha! You’re blushing! I  _ knew _ it!” Dina exclaimed triumphantly, and for a second Ellie contemplated jumping into the lake and just putting herself out of her misery right then and there. 

“I don’t fucking like Jesse!” Her words were clipped and filled with more anger than she’d originally intended, and Dina quickly raised her hands in surrender, eyebrows shooting up. 

“Okay, okay, I get it, you don’t like Jesse.” There was a moment of awkward tension, but it must have faded quickly for Dina, as her expression fell back into an easy smile. “That’s good, actually. I think Jesse might be into me.” 

Now it was Ellie’s turn to raise her eyebrows, looking at Dina with surprise and trying to ignore the slight twinge in her stomach. “Wait, back up. Since when?” Dina shrugged nonchalantly, but Ellie didn’t miss the dusting of red against her cheeks, and she chewed at the inside of her cheek, averting her gaze. 

“He, uh… He’s been coming over more, hanging out.” Dina chuckled, scratching the back of her neck. “I dunno, it could be nothing.”

“What, do you like him or something?” The question was out of Ellie’s mouth before she could stop it, and she almost cringed at the accusatory tone, her skin heating in embarrassment. 

Dina turned to look at Ellie, her gaze penetrating, and suddenly she felt like she was sitting there naked. Exposed. She had the absurd urge to cross her arms over her chest, do something to cover herself, to hide away. 

“Maybe?” Dina offered, voice small as she shifted her gaze towards the group of boys now roughhousing in the water. “I mean, he is pretty cute.” A long sigh. “Fuck, I don’t know, Ellie. What if it made everything weird? Like, ruined our friendship and stuff?” Ellie didn’t immediately respond, just nodded slowly along to Dina’s words, studying her toes as they skimmed the surface of the lake. 

“I guess it’s like… Fuck, man, we could die tomorrow, you know?” She paused, searching for the right words. “I don’t know, sometimes you just gotta do the thing, even if it scares you.  _ Especially _ when it scares you. Because that’s how you know it’s important.” She felt her thoughts drift back to that fateful day at the mall, her old scar suddenly throbbing, and even though the chemical burn covered every inch of what lied underneath, Ellie could still see the bite mark. Memories filled her head and Ellie felt her throat go thick, swallowing past the lump of emotion and trying to think of anything but Riley. 

It was almost like Dina could sense the shift in Ellie’s mood, because suddenly she felt the pressure of her hand over her own, their fingers gently entwining together. “You’re right,” she said, offering Ellie a soft smile. “I’ll think about it. Thanks, El.” 

It shouldn’t have been possible, but somehow Ellie felt her blush deepen even further, eyes flickering towards their clasped hands. She wondered if Dina could hear her heart thundering in her chest. 

“Girls,” Ellie blurted impulsively, shutting her eyes tight as soon as the word left her mouth. 

“Uh… girls?” 

“I like… I like girls. Not, not boys. Girls.” 

_ Very smooth, Ellie.  _

When Dina didn’t immediately respond, Ellie’s heart began to pound even faster, her fight or flight reflexes kicking in, and she never wanted to disappear more than she did right then; but she forced herself to stay. Dina’s hand still rested on top of hers, and Ellie clung to that feeling as she took a deep breath, exhaling slowly through her mouth. 

Just when Ellie felt she might literally explode from the pressure building in her chest, Dina’s face broke out into a smile as she squeezed Ellie’s hand. “Cool.” 

“Cool?” Ellie parroted back to her in surprise, eyebrows raised. 

“Well, duh,” Dina giggled, nudging her with her shoulder. “You should’ve told me earlier! I could’ve been quizzing you about the girls you like, not wasting my time on those dumb  _ boys.”  _

Ellie gawked. “Wait, that’s it? You’re not, like, weirded out by me?” 

“Of course not,” Dina chided, but her eyes were soft when she looked at her, gentle and open and full of understanding, her smile widening into a teasing grin. “That’s like, the least weird thing about you, dude.” 

_ “Hey!”  _

And then they were both giggling, laughter growing in intensity until their shoulders shook, somehow ending up lying on their backs against the soft wood of the dock. As she watched the clouds pass overhead, Ellie felt free, like a thousand pound weight had been lifted off of her shoulders; and she couldn’t help the butterflies fluttering in her stomach at the realization that Dina’s hand was still clasped in her own. 

They settled into a comfortable silence, holding hands until the boys came back to shore, shivering with purple lips but laughing like they’d never felt better. Ellie reluctantly let Dina’s hand go, and she watched from a distance while Jesse chased Dina around the beach, trying to smack her with a twisted towel. Eventually he caught her, wrapping her up in his strong arms and dragging her screeching form dangerously close to the water, before releasing her and beginning the chase again. 

Now that Dina had pointed it out, it was impossible to miss; the way Jesse always found an excuse to touch her, how his gaze always lingered on her just a little too long to be friendly. Ellie wasn’t all that experienced when it came to crushes, but it wasn’t too hard to figure out that Jesse had one, whatever that meant. Ignoring the slimy feeling of jealousy in the pit of her stomach, however… 

Now that one was a bit harder. 

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on tumblr @ martymulder


End file.
